Oberlin Stories Project
We have collected hundreds of personal narratives from students, alumni, faculty, and staff that explain the merits and strengths of Oberlin through the eyes of those who have experienced it firsthand.
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![Multiracial family portrait with Myrina and 3 kids.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/myrina_mccullough_69.jpg?itok=Dh-Do-yp)
On America’s first black president
“I’m glad and proud that I … and countless other Obies who have also shared their stories here all rejected the paralyzing fear of “otherness” that keeps people apart and keeps our world fragmented.”
Myrina D. McCullough ’69
![Three runners round the bend on an indoor track](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/john_shaw_07.jpg?itok=lp7PYsRd)
On training
“With the curtain obscuring most of the fieldhouse from view, the track became a tunnel that my distance mates and I would fly around countless times at every imaginable speed and level of (dis)...
John Shaw ’07
![Christopher with 2 men, all wearing suits](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/christopher_sanders_08.jpg?itok=4KP5kV-b)
On the lifelong connection to Oberlin’s values
“Oberlin instills in each student a dedication to improving the lives of others... I continue to incorporate my four years of experiences into my everyday life while working in the U.S. House of...
Christopher Sanders ’08
![Wearing scrubs, gloves, and a mask, Tom performs surgery.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/tom_carroll_96.jpg?itok=vw2t7wOV)
On finding his “voice” again after so many years of medical training
“I am blessed that I remained firmly committed to my seemingly disparate passions for voice and medicine. Professor Miller must have been able to see something then that I never could have...
Tom Carroll ’96
![Nora points out a sign in German: Herzlich Willkommen in St. Wolfgang.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/nora_frederickson_10.jpg?itok=ReasaKQH)
On her semester abroad
“What does dancing on the bar of a rural Austrian disco have to do with an Oberlin education? (Answer inside!)”
Nora Frederickson ’10
![Six friends with arms around each other](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/david_fegley_13.jpg?itok=1Bd7dr5o)
On friendship
“Rather than watch Melanie’s cold slowly progress, we, her loyal third-floor Barrows friends, decided to take action. We needed a holiday, a new holiday, to celebrate all things Melanie.”
David Fegley ’13
![2 people at a campsite picnic table](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/adina_langer_06.jpg?itok=Btt2kQfz)
On a fateful spring break
“In the spring of 2004, I embarked on my first ever camping trip with two of my best friends from Oberlin ... I didn’t know yet, but on that trip, I’d caught a permanent case of the research bug. I...
Adina Langer ’06
![Qian extends her palms as if she's holding the sun.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/qian_cheng_13.jpg?itok=z5IZZKP9)
On finding her path
“Oberlin opens up so many opportunities and challenges for students to explore life choices that even if you have absolutely no idea what you are heading for... you will always somehow find your...
Qian Cheng ’13
![Students with President Krislov show off creates full of lightbullbs](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/kristin_braziunas_08.jpg?itok=VmfFqcDS)
On coordinating the Light Bulb Brigade
“Ten months, 10,000 light bulbs, and one bachelor’s degree later... this is something that for me has come to define Oberlin.”
Kristin Braziunas ’08
![Field hockey players gather during a break in the action](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/emily_whitaker_12.jpg?itok=LToR9-SS)
On the last field hockey game of the season
“All at once, the reality of my situation hit me hard. In one hundred and eighty seconds my first varsity field hockey season would be over, and I found myself unprepared...I had never felt more part...
Emily Whitaker ’12
![Couples dancing](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/amy_hess_12.jpg?itok=IX2DGeKT)
On learning tango
“Nothing is as awkward as the first class of Argentine tango. Take two very nervous strangers, both aware of their mutual ignorance of dancing, make them stand chest-to-chest and hold each other, and...
Amy Hess ’12
![Rose and a friend have fun carving a pumpkin.](https://www.oberlin.edu/sites/default/files/styles/story_350/public/content/story/image/rose_guardino_17.jpg?itok=yELY7Wmd)
On the real breakfast club
“Our crew is composed of varsity athletes, artists, intramural people, scholars, and scientists...We recognize that everyone has something to offer and deserves to be heard.”
Rose Guardino ’17